RECIPES

Lavender Turkey Marsala, with salad and potatoes

When I first told my husband Gary I was going to cook with lavender he said “Are you sure you want to put lavender in food, what will it taste like?”

The first recipe I tried on him was Lavender Turkey Marsala.  Well he tasted it and liked it.  In fact, the next day he came home and asked, “Are we having anything with lavender for dinner”?  I then knew for sure that lavender was a good thing in cooking.  Listed below is my recipe for Lavender Turkey Marsala.  The picture shows my Lavender Turkey Marsala served with purple potatoes and mixed green salad with gorgonzola cheese and oil and balsamic vinegar dressing.

2 cups thinly sliced mushrooms
1/8 cup olive oil - approximate
1 tablespoon butter
6 turkey cutlets
1/4 cup flour
1/8 cup olive oil - approximate
1 tablespoon butter
1 cup dry marsala wine
1 teaspoon crushed/bruised culinary lavender buds

Take turkey cutlets and pound with a metal tenderizer mallet on both sides. Dredge in flour and set aside on a cake rack to dry out at room temperature. I use a zip lock bag filled with the flour to dredge the cutlets in - coats them well and is less messy than a plate. Place 1/8 cup olive oil and one tablespoon of butter in large stainless steel frying pan (not cast iron) and heat till melted, add sliced mushrooms and cook till just slightly soft. Drain and remove mushrooms and set aside. Put enough olive oil to coat the bottom of the same frying pan and one tablespoon of butter and heat till melted and warm, add turkey cutlets and cook on both sides till just slightly brown. If frying pan is not large enough to cook all cutlets at once, cook just a few and set aside and then add others. Add cutlets back into frying pan, cover with mushrooms and bring to a boil on high heat, add marsala wine and cook for 30 seconds or so and then immediately turn down heat. Last (but not least) add the crushed lavender buds, cover and simmer about 5 minutes till a fork inserted into the cutlet goes in and comes out easily. Thickness of cutlet will determine final cooking time.